Discover the beginnings of Baptists in Stogumber, written as part of the Quantock Landscape Partnership Project.
Stogumber and Baptists
An Anglican Churchman, John Smith, became convinced that the baptism of infants was unnecessary and should only be for believers who could make up their own minds. Whilst in Amsterdam, he baptised himself and in 1612 brought a small group of followers to London where he set up the first General Baptist Church. Different versions of Baptists emerged in the 1600’s, but they all agreed that Baptising should be done by full immersion in water. Many separatist churches came to Somerset during the civil war.
The Baptists were originally endowed in the village of Stogumber in 1690, a year after the act of Toleration granted by William and Mary. Jane Prowse of Old Cleeve was a supporter of the teachers and preachers of the Baptist faith and on 8th April 1690, she endowed the sum of £250 for 5000 years “for the benefit and behoof for such godly and pious persons of sermons and exemplary conversations of said teachers of God’s holy word in and about the towns of Dunster, Stogumber and Taunton” (T/PH/VCH/50). The money was to be invested in land and the interest on this was to be distributed: £50 to Taunton and £200 to the preachers of Stogumber and Dunster. The trustees invested in the purchase of Ganders farm and Mill near Bampton in Devon, the rents providing the endowment. There was not a congregation in Stogumber until 1718, and the original chapel was erected in 1729 (T/PH/VCH/50). The present building was built on the same site in 1868. Stogumber was the senior church of all Exmoor Baptists.
Robert Fuller was the minister of Stogumber Baptist Church in the 1790’s. His brother Andrew was first secretary of the Baptist Missionary society that supported William Carey to take the gospel to India. In support of this Robert Fuller sailed for India in 1792.
Also, in the 1790’s Eleanor Hurford was converted to the Baptist faith. She was engaged to Robert Moore who was not a Christian. Eleanor persuaded Robert to attend Chapel with her, but he would only go once. She informed him that she was going to be baptised, which would take place in the river just outside of the village. Eleanor asked him to come to the ceremony, to which he agreed, but in order to show his contempt he set up a table of beer pots and when Eleanor stepped out of the river, he would throw his dog in the water with her. However, as she testified her faith, he had a conversion. They were married in 1805 and sailed for India to join William Carey at Serampore (D/N/sr.b/7/2/1).
Information taken from T/PH/VCH/50 and D/N/sr.b/7/2/1
